Decades of Dollars
Encyclopedia
Decades of Dollars is the name of a lottery game that became available on January 30, 2011 in Georgia
, Kentucky
, and Virginia. The game is drawn Monday and Thursday nights, including holidays. Decades of Dollars replaced Win for Life in Kentucky.
Decades of Dollars became available in Arkansas on May 3, 2011; the first drawing to include Arkansas was two days later.
Each Decades of Dollars game costs $2; players choose 6 numbers
from 1 through 47. Any game with at least two matching numbers wins (see below.)
Matching all six numbers wins $250,000 yearly over 30 installments; unlike WfL, a cash option
($4,000,000) is available. These amounts are reduced if a given drawing produces more than two top-prize winners, as the top prize liability is $10,000,000 cash.
In the first Decades of Dollars drawing (Thursday, February 3, 2011, as the first Monday of game sales did not have a drawing), 11 games won the $10,000 second prize: seven in Virginia, with two each in Georgia and Kentucky.
As with other US multi-jurisdictional games, a Decades of Dollars winning ticket must be redeemed in the jurisdiction where the ticket was bought.
Potentially, other southeastern US lotteries may join the existing Decades of Dollars game.
As of November 18, 2011, there has yet to be a top-prize winner (of either payment option) in the game. A possible format change for Decades of Dollars is being considered.
Decades of Dollars drawings are conducted by the Georgia Lottery at WSB-TV in Atlanta, which also hosts Mega Millions
drawings.
Georgia Lottery
The Georgia Lottery is overseen by the government of Georgia, United States. Headquartered in Atlanta and run by the Georgia Lottery Corporation, the lottery takes in over US$1 billion yearly. By law, half of the money goes to prizes, one-third to education, and the remainder to operating and...
, Kentucky
Kentucky Lottery
The Kentucky Lottery, consisting of various games of chance, is a government-regulated form of gambling. The Lottery began in April 1989 after a November 1988 vote in which over 60% of voters cast ballots in favor of it. On April 4, 1989, ticket sales began with first day sales of over $5 million...
, and Virginia. The game is drawn Monday and Thursday nights, including holidays. Decades of Dollars replaced Win for Life in Kentucky.
Decades of Dollars became available in Arkansas on May 3, 2011; the first drawing to include Arkansas was two days later.
Each Decades of Dollars game costs $2; players choose 6 numbers
Pick 6 (lottery)
A six-number lottery game, often having Pick-6 or Lotto as part of its name, is a form of lottery in which six numbers are drawn from a larger pool . Winning the top prize, usually a jackpot, requires a player to match all six regular numbers drawn; the order in which they are drawn is irrelevant...
from 1 through 47. Any game with at least two matching numbers wins (see below.)
- Match 2 of 6:
- a free $2 play automatically generated by a lottery terminal (in Kentucky and Virginia)
- $2 cash (in Arkansas and Georgia)
- Match 3 of 6: $10
- Match 4 of 6: $100
- Match 5 of 6: $10,000 (liability limit $250,000 across the four jurisdictions)
- Match 6 of 6: see below
Matching all six numbers wins $250,000 yearly over 30 installments; unlike WfL, a cash option
Present value
Present value, also known as present discounted value, is the value on a given date of a future payment or series of future payments, discounted to reflect the time value of money and other factors such as investment risk...
($4,000,000) is available. These amounts are reduced if a given drawing produces more than two top-prize winners, as the top prize liability is $10,000,000 cash.
In the first Decades of Dollars drawing (Thursday, February 3, 2011, as the first Monday of game sales did not have a drawing), 11 games won the $10,000 second prize: seven in Virginia, with two each in Georgia and Kentucky.
As with other US multi-jurisdictional games, a Decades of Dollars winning ticket must be redeemed in the jurisdiction where the ticket was bought.
Potentially, other southeastern US lotteries may join the existing Decades of Dollars game.
As of November 18, 2011, there has yet to be a top-prize winner (of either payment option) in the game. A possible format change for Decades of Dollars is being considered.
Decades of Dollars drawings are conducted by the Georgia Lottery at WSB-TV in Atlanta, which also hosts Mega Millions
Mega Millions
Mega Millions is a US multi-jurisdictional $1 lottery game. Since it replaced The Big Game in May 2002 , Mega Millions' advertised jackpots have started at $12 million, paid in 26 yearly installments , increasing when there is no jackpot winner...
drawings.